An ACRO Police Certificate apostille confirms the authenticity of the signature on a UK ACRO certificate. ACRO Police Certificates show an applicant’s criminal history in the UK. So, an ACRO Police Certificate will disclose details of any convictions, reprimands, cautions, absolute discharges, conditional discharges, warnings, impending prosecutions, ongoing Court proceedings, or ongoing current investigations. ACRO Police Certificates will also show foreign criminal records if they have been disclosed to UK authorities. ACRO certificates are often required for immigration or visa applications, or when an embassy or consulate requests one. To be recognised overseas, an ACRO Police Certificate requires legalisation. For most countries this means obtaining an ACRO apostille.
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ACRO Police Certificate Document Formats for Apostille
You can get an ACRO Police Certificate apostille from the FCDO Legalisation Office for the following document formats:
- Your original ACRO Police Certificate signed by an official of the issuing authority
- Your original ACRO Police Certificate without a signature from an official of the issuing authority
- A printout of your electronic ACRO Police Certificate produced from the original PDF or other electronic document
However, there are significant considerations for anything but an ACRO certificate signed by an official of the issuing authority. So, please contact us or use our free apostille document review service if you wish to legalise any other format.
Even then, some countries may require that, for certain purposes, your ACRO Police Certificate is notarised prior to obtaining the apostille. Fortunately, as we are a firm of notaries, this is something that Fatchett Legalisation can handle for you in house.
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FAQ
Certain countries, such as Cyprus and Portugal, require the ACRO certificate to be notarised for some applications. One of our notaries can notarise your original ACRO Police certificate before applying for the apostille.
We can obtain an apostille for all UK ACRO certificates, including
• No Trace – there are no convictions, cautions, reprimands/warnings or conditional discharges
• No Live Trace – there is a criminal record but this information does not appear on the certificate because it has been stepped down or deleted by the Court
• Trace – there is a criminal record and all the information has been disclosed publicly
• Further Information Stepped Down – there are records of criminal activity, but only relevant criminal record information appears on the certificate as some information has been stepped down from National DNA Database (NDNAD), National Fingerprint Database (IDENT1) and/or the Police National Computer (PNC).
You should not have a solicitor certify your ACRO certificate, as any apostille will then be issued based on the solicitor’s signature and not that of the original official signee. Some countries don’t accept this as a legalised document, and those that do only take a solicitor-certified apostille in a certain range of cases.
Unfortunately, there is not a yes or no answer to the necessity of ACRO apostille notarisation. Some countries may require notary for some purposes, even though they are members of the Hague Apostille Convention. For example. Portugal requires a notary to
No, UK Police certificates are never issued electronically, only in hard copy, so electronic apostille is not available for this type of document.
New ACRO certificates are available from acro.police.uk. If you are pressed for time, you can request that the new certificate be sent directly to us for apostille.
No. Unfortunately, we cannot apply for an ACRO certificate on your behalf.
OR
Some countries require ACRO certificates to be translated. Translation requirements can depend not only on the country but also on the purpose at hand. So, you need to check what the requesting authority needs. Sometimes, the translation must be made by an authorised translator overseas. Spain is a prime example. This can add days and perhaps weeks to the process.
No, although both documents include criminal record details, an enhanced DBS check includes ongoing investigations and pending cases, whereas the ACRO only details criminal records and spent convictions. Most foreign countries only require the less-detailed ACRO with an apostille.
No. To get an apostille in the UK, you must use an original ACRO Police Certificate. Copies cannot be processed.
Yes. Having been to the UK to apply for an ACRO certificate is optional. However, the primary purpose of the ACRO Police certificate is to demonstrate the criminal record, or lack of criminal record of people who have lived or worked in the UK.
ACRO is the United Kingdom’s Criminal Record Information System designated by the Home Secretary to exchange information records with all EU and non-EU Interpol countries and show the details of an individual’s criminal convictions or if there are currently open cases against the applicant or ongoing process of prosecution. An ACRO Police Certificate will disclose details of any convictions, impending prosecutions, cautions, reprimands, absolute or conditional discharges, warnings, ongoing current investigations of Court proceeding.
ACRO is an acronym for the ACPO Criminal Records Office. ACPO stands for Association of Chief Police Officers. The ACRO Criminal Records Office is a national police unit which issues ACRO certificates . The office was founded in 2006 to establish an operationally focused unit organising management of criminal records information and enhancing the links between criminal records and biometric information.
Countries outside of the Apostille Convention will not recognise an apostilled Police Certificate. As of July 2024, 127 states are contracting states of the Apostille Convention, but Iran, Lebanon, Malaysia, and Vietnam (North) are not. Fatchett Legalisation can advise you on alternative methods of document legalisation for non-contracting locales.
Please note that some countries may not recognise apostilled ACRO certificates unless they are notarised. Other countries may only accept apostilled Police Certificates for specific legal purposes but demand notarisation of the apostilled ACRO certificate for different uses.
The FCDO will not issue an apostille certificate if the signature on your ACRO Police Certificate is not recognised. Rejection typically occurs when the signature of authorised person is not in their official database, as the Police Certificate is very new or very old. Currently, there is no way to check the signature before submission.
If the FCDO rejects your certificate for apostille and the acro certificate is very new, contact the Criminal Records Ofice and ask the person who signed the certificate to register their signature with the FCDO.
For very old certificates, order a new official replacement copy from the ACRO Criminal Records Office.
Alternatively, one of our solicitors can certify the ACRO certificate and get the apostille. However, the FCDO will then issue the apostille based on the solicitor’s signature, not the signature on your ACRO certificate. Many overseas authorities will not accept this. So, you should first contact the requesting authority to confirm that this would be acceptable for your intended use.
You can apply for an ACRO Police Certificate by completing the application form online and providing the following:
- A recent high-quality, colour photograph with a plain neutral background (in JPG, GIF, or TIF format, not exceeding 2MB).
- Colour copies of your passport or travel document displaying all details.
- A valid email address for communication.
- Address history for the last 10 years.
- Payment method: a valid debit or credit card.
You can apply on behalf of someone else, but you must provide:
- A signed letter of authorisation or a copy of a Power of Attorney.
- Proof of identity showing the data subject’s signature such as passport, driving licence, or official identity card.
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